


The road less traveled

by lepiafbleu



Series: OiHina Week 2020 [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Canon Compliant, Gen, It's not that shippy so you can still read it if you just see them as friends :D, M/M, OiHina Week 2020, Post-Time Skip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2020-11-09
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:54:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27474598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lepiafbleu/pseuds/lepiafbleu
Summary: "I just got a text from Iwa-chan. He's worried about his exams." Oikawa shrugged as he put his phone on the table. "I don't know what to tell him apart from 'good luck!' or something snarky. I mean, I haven't got anything resembling school for the past three years.""I see what you mean! I have a group chat with Yachi, Yamaguchi and Tsukishima and they all talk about college stuff I can't relate to."Oikawa nodded before resting his chin on the palm of his hand, as he often did when he wanted to get into an interesting discussion. After a few seconds, he finally made eye-contact with Hinata, who couldn't understand the expression on Oikawa's face. Was he curious? Sad?"Do you wish you were in college, Shoyo? Sometimes?"Oikawa and Hinata have dinner together and discuss the path they have chosen.For Oihina Week 2020, day 1 : College
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou & Oikawa Tooru, Hinata Shouyou/Oikawa Tooru
Series: OiHina Week 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2007493
Comments: 8
Kudos: 45





	The road less traveled

It was another warm summer evening in Rio de Janeiro. After a couple of games of beach volleyball, Oikawa and Hinata were sharing dinner in a cheap restaurant near the coast. They usually fit right in the bustling atmosphere of the crowded restaurant, always chatting and laughing, but that time Oikawa was humming thoughtfully while scrolling on his phone, not letting any specific feeling show on his face. Hinata leaned to appear in Oikawa's field of vision, right behind his phone, to no avail.

"Oikawa-san? Is there something wrong?"

"What? Hm, no, I just got a text from Iwa-chan. He's worried about his exams." Oikawa shrugged as he put his phone on the table. "I don't know what to tell him apart from 'good luck!' or something snarky. I mean, I haven't got anything resembling school for the past three years."

"I see what you mean! I have a group chat with Yachi, Yamaguchi and Tsukishima and they all talk about college stuff I can't relate to."

Oikawa nodded before resting his chin on the palm of his hand, as he often did when he wanted to get into an interesting discussion. After a few seconds, he finally made eye-contact with Hinata, who couldn't understand the expression on Oikawa's face. Was he curious? Sad?

"Do you wish you were in college, Shoyo? Sometimes?"

"Not at all!" Hinata exclaimed with a horrified expression. "I was really bad at tests! I don't miss that at all!"

"I'm not asking if you're missing tests," Oikawa laughed. "But the college experience everyone's making a big fuss about."

Hinata cocked his head to the side, unable to find a better answer than the one he had already given. What was the "college experience" Oikawa and everyone else were talking about? Was it really better than what they were doing in South America? Sure, he could have met a lot of new people his own age going through the same things as him, but Hinata couldn't imagine how he would feel if he had homework and tests again, that simple thought made him grimace. Oikawa's amused chuckle snapped him out of his thoughts.

"I never thought of going to college!" Hinata blurted out. Once he realized what he had said, he blushed and looked at his plate. He started toying with the forkful of rice he was about to eat.

"Really? It could only be volleyball, for you? You've never thought of anything else?"

Hinata didn't dare make eye-contact with Oikawa after saying something embarrassing like that and he couldn't really tell from his voice if he was mocking him or feeling concerned. He threw a glance, only to be met with a curious, patient stare. Oikawa didn't look like he was about to laugh at him, so Hinata took a deep breath.

"I never had good grades. I'm restless all the time. I don't think I can work an office job and I don't want to. I was relieved to be good at volleyball, really!" Hinata laughed weakly. "How about you? You look pretty smart."

"I know!" Oikawa smirked, before going back to a more serious expression. "I had good grades, but volleyball was the only thing on my mind. I kept thinking of a backup plan, of the kind of university I would pick just in case, which major... I was changing my mind every few weeks! I never got a clear idea, in the end. I just wanted to play volleyball."

Oikawa suddenly remembered that he should continue eating before everything got cold, so he eagerly ate his rice, shrimps and vegetables while gushing over the deliciousness of Brazilian food. His enthusiasm was contagious, Hinata soon mirrored him and the atmosphere at their table finally became lighter. A few bites before finishing his plate, Oikawa asked a question that he seemed to find very amusing, judging from his mischievous smile.

"Did people call you crazy when you said you wanted to go to Brazil?"

"Yes! Especially at school! I swear Kageyama called me a dumbass twice as much as he usually did! Tsukishima even joined him! And Yachi almost fainted when I told her. She bought me a method to learn Portuguese and a guide of Rio de Janeiro for my birthday that year, she was so worried!"

"Now that's a considerate manager!" Oikawa grinned. "And your family didn't mind that you wanted to leave?"

"They knew I wasn't going to college, but they lost it when I said I wanted to leave the country. I'd never been abroad before!"

Oikawa almost dropped his fork right there. He carefully put it back on his plate and stared at Hinata with disbelief.

"Wait. So this,"Oikawa stammered, pointing his index finger and tapping it on the table. "This, right now, it's your first time outside of Japan?"

"Yup! My family doesn't have that much money so we always stayed nearby for the holidays. In my third year, I had to take a part-time job to have money for plane tickets and everything."

"Shoyo," Oikawa sighed, letting himself fall against the back of his chair. "Every time, I think I'm finally used to how scary and bold you are, and now you tell me you just flew to another continent for two years by yourself with no previous traveling experience? You're killing me."

"You'd already been abroad before Argentina?" Hinata asked while stuffing his face with rice.

"I went to China and Australia for holidays a few years ago, yeah. So your parents accepted anyway?"

"They saw that I was serious and our coach told them that Kato-san from Shiratorizawa was living in Rio, that he was going to coach me and take care of everything, so my parents figured I'd be okay."

"And that you were giving them no choice."

"You make me sound so mean!"

"I don't think you're mean, I think you're stubborn," Oikawa laughed. "But going to Argentina was crazy too, so I can't blame you."

Hinata grinned at Oikawa's answer. They were both reckless people who had decided to follow their own path, no matter what everyone else thought, even if they were taking a risk of failing and losing it all. Knowing that he wasn't alone in thinking that way made Hinata feel more at peace with the trail he was blazing for himself, and that's why he treasured those conversations with Oikawa. Hinata pushed away his now empty plate with a satisfied sigh.

"You were called crazy too? For going to Argentina?"

"My teammates didn't really say anything, but I could tell they were thinking that. Iwa-chan had expected it somehow, that guy knows me too well..."

"And your family?"

"They were furious. My parents really rubbed it in that I couldn't hope to make it in the Argentinian league when I had never qualified for Nationals in Japan. We had a few shouting matches," Oikawa cringed. "I could have gone to the college in Miyagi that scouted me, but that was too small and I was too impatient. I thought that I deserved better than that. Fortunately, José Blanco managed to convince my parents that I had potential and that he would help me get a visa."

As Hinata and Oikawa agreed to split the bill that time, Hinata thought that things hadn't been easy for Oikawa either, even if he skillfully hid that behind his natural confidence and charm. The fact that Oikawa allowed him to chip away at that façade, because they weren't so different underneath it, it made him grateful. Not being in college and not being able to relate to that kind of experience made Hinata feel quite lonely sometimes. He didn't know many people his own age in South America, after all. But there they were, two crazy people whose solitary paths had crossed again by complete coincidence.

"Oikawa-san, to answer your first question..."

"Hm?"

"I don't wish I were in college right now. I don't wish to be anywhere but here."

Oikawa's eyes widened for an instant before he cracked a smile at Hinata.

"Me neither."

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written fanfiction for a few years and now I have several WIP haha  
> English is my second language, so please tell me if I made mistakes :)
> 
> If you want to scream about OiHina with me, I'm on Twitter @lincroyablepiaf, thank you for reading!


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